New Opportunity for Improved Nuclear Forensics, Radiochemical Diagnostics, and Nuclear Astrophysics: Need for a Total-Cross-Section Apparatus at the LANSCE

Technical Report · Wed Mar 12 00:00:00 EDT 2014

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/1123773· OSTI ID:1123773

Koehler, Paul E. ^[1]; Hayes-Sterbenz, Anna C. ^[1]; Bredeweg, Todd Allen ^[1]; Couture, Aaron J. ^[1]; Engle, Jonathan ^[1]; Keksis, August L. ^[1]; Nortier, Francois M. ^[1]; Ullmann, John L. ^[1]

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1. Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)

Total-cross-section measurements are feasible on a much wider range of radioactive samples than (n,γ) cross-section measurements, and information extracted from the former can be used to set tight constraints on the latter. There are many (n,γ) cross sections of great interest to radiochemical diagnostics, nuclear forensics, and nuclear astrophysics which are beyond the reach of current direct measurement, that could be obtained in this way. Our simulations indicate that measurements can be made at the Manuel Lujan Jr. Neutron Scattering Center at the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center for samples as small as 10μg. There are at least 40 high-interest nuclides which should be measurable, including ⁸⁸Y,^{167,168,170,171}Tm, ^173,174Lu, and^189,190,192Ir.

• Research Organization: Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)
• DOE Contract Number: AC52-06NA25396
• OSTI ID: 1123773
• Report Number(s): LA-UR-14-21656
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS
73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS